I’m a junior in high school and am really confused about the early decision process.
What is the difference between early decision vs early action?
What is restrictive vs non-restricting?
What is binding vs non-binding?
What are some example of schools with these different kinds of EA/ED processes?
A simple Google search will tell you all.
ED-admitted early, binding. No going back. YOU MUST ATTEND. Barring any financial issues.
EA-admitted early, but not binding. You are free to look at any other colleges and can deposit wherever you like.
Not sure what you mean by different processes.
ED is binding: Binding means you sign a contract committing you to go to that university (Barring any financial issues). You, your parent(s) and school guidance counselor all sign it.
Take a look at university’s websites for description of each one (or Google). The school are VERY GOOD at explaining their process.
Restrictive means that the school restricts you from some applying to other schools during the early process.
But again, please do some research on Google and read a few examples on university websites. They are very instructive.
In reading my response, I want to clarify… restrictive doesn’t mean you are restricted from all schools. Some schools don’t want you to apply to multiple schools during the early round. Read the rules on each school’s site.